Adore Miridia (2005)

Goodbye Blue Skies

And you would be wrong. These guys make it work without paying too much homage to the past at all. The sheer heaviness of these songs combined with the creatively brutal guitar work combined with the math-rock off-time intensity of the drumming turn this EP into a rabid animal that you will love at first bite (if you're into that sorta thing). Add to that mix the lowest, sickest non-death-metal vocals this side of Coalesce and you've got something special. A band that somehow manages to be mind-numbingly brutal and still maintain some level of innovation. Imagine that.

The one element in this band that I still can't get over, even after seeing them live countless times in the past 2-3 years, is the drumming. Even after switching drummers (and my god, their old drummer was sick) they still have one of the most technical drummers around who still has a good feel for the music, which many drummers lack. The time signatures this guy comes up with are mind-boggling, but (as with bands like Dillinger Escape Plan) the music doesn't collapse under the weight of its own technical prowace, but rather trudges on by the might of it. The guitar playing is almost equally impressive with rapid-fire, complex riffing and chord structures that perfectly complement the fast-paced rhythmic palpatations. The guy is definitely a tone freak, too. His guitar sound is monsterous and he owns all kinds of amazing equipment paid for by the recording studio that he runs from his own home.

Brutality and creativity are the words of the day with this CD and if they're what you're looking for, then settle in my friend and enjoy.